Grant Submission Training Coordinator

The retention and advancement of STEM/SBS faculty women is enhanced when they are
grant successful. We have designated a Grant Submission Training Coordinator to work
with all faculty, but giving priority to women STEM/SBS faculty to assist with training
on submitting proposals for external funding. These efforts have included training
and assistance with: generating high quality grants, budget development, paperwork
submission, responding to reviewers, researching unusual circumstances related to
possible grant activities, and facilitating interdisciplinary collaborations. The
VP for Research is partially supporting this position and if successful there is commitment
to sustaining the position long term.

Grant Facilitator Network

A list of successful grantees has been populated and circulated through the Grant
Submission Training Coordinator to any faculty member looking for grant mentoring
and advice, with priority given to matching up women in STEM/SBS fields with a Grant
Facilitator. The Grant Submission Training Coordinator makes the first contact to
the potential “grants facilitator” and offers the person a small incentive for serving
as a reader/revision advisor. The Montana INBRE program (NIH IDeA Networks of Biomedical
Research Excellence) has graciously contributed to this program.

What we will do

Timeline

Hypothesized Need-support

Create “Grant Facilitators” Network

Collaboration and communication with INBRE and Office of Faculty Excellence

Recruitment of potential Facilitators

Outreach to potential grant submitters

Coordination of network

Connecting you with a Grant Facilitator! Learn more about this program. Click here.

Diversification Mini-Grant Award Program

Completely funded by the VP for Research office, proposal solicitations are announced
each year to all faculty with priority given to outstanding applications by women
in STEM/SBS. We are anticipating 4 awards per year; we recognized 7 faculty members
the first year and 3 the second year. The mini-grants can be used to diversify one’
s research or teaching and could include requesting funds to collect pilot data, collaborate
on an interdisciplinary project, develop multi-department research proposals or courses,
pair new faculty with senior faculty across departments, request funds for retreats,
workshops, or speakers, travel to other campuses and conferences, add a diversity
component to existing research and courses, etc.

Interdisciplinary-Joint Appointments Toolkit

Women in STEM/SBS doing interdisciplinary work who transition to joint appointments
broker new connections in interdisciplinary research across colleges and within departmental
institutes. This engagement reduces feelings of isolation and increases opportunities
to build professional networks. However, policy and protocol for how to review and
implement an Interdisciplinary Joint Appointment is needed. With assistance from the
MSU Research Council we are developing a tool kit applicable to all faculty that will:

Establish policies and procedures for reviewing interdisciplinary faculty research
and teaching at retention, tenure, and promotion evaluations

Establish policies and procedures for formative, adaptive evaluations of effectiveness
of interdisciplinary activities generally, and specifically their role in advancing
women and underrepresented minorities in STEM and SBS disciplines

What we will do

Timeline

Hypothesized Need-support

Interdisciplinary-Joint appointments policy toolkit

Bringing interdisciplinary women scholars together

Collaboration and communication with Research Council and VPR of Research